Egypt says it will open crossing with Gaza

Philadelphia Inquirer Saturday 30th April, 2011

JERUSALEM - Egypt's announcement that it will open a key border crossing with the Palestinian Gaza Strip within days sparked concern in Israel on Friday and revealed how the upheaval in the Arab world is shifting the Mideast conflict. Under former President Hosni Mubarak, Egypt restricted the movement of people and goods through the Rafah crossing, in keeping with a blockade it imposed on Gaza along with Israel. The restrictions aimed to weaken the Hamas extremists who rule Gaza and whom both Egypt and Israel saw, until recently, as a common enemy. After Mubarak's Feb. 11 ouster by a popular uprising, Egypt's transitional cabinet and ruling military council are taking a cooler line toward Israel and the United States. Egypt has also been warming its ties with Israel's enemies, chiefly Ha...

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